Three BIG reasons you should switch to a pescetarian diet today

A pescetarian diet is much like a vegetarian diet in that it excludes animal and bird meat. But, a pescetarian diet includes fish, crustaceans and mollusks in addition to fruits, vegetables, legumes, plants, nuts and grains. You may or may not also include eggs and dairy.

Whether you adopt a pescetarian diet for health reasons or ethical reasons, switching to a pescetarian diet is one of the most important health-consious and earth-friendly decisions you will ever make. Here’s why:

1. Enhance your energy, vitality and overall well-being

A pescetarian diet can not only reduce your risk to heart disease and some types of cancer like cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, rectum, colon and esophagus, but also reduce risk to other killer diseases like diabetes, osteoporosis, high blood pressure, obesity and stroke.

According to experts from the Yale College Vegetarian Society, fish, fruits, vegetables, whole grains and tofu provide all the fiber and low saturated fat and oils you need to drastically increase your energy, vitality and overall well-being. 95% of former meat-eaters report improved vigor and vitality when they adopt a meat-free lifestyle.

Additionally, a fish diet supplies adequate amounts of polyunsaturated omega-3 fatty acids and plant sources supply adequate amounts of proteins and iron, which significantly lower the risk of anemia. Anemia and iron deficiency are problems often seen in vegetarians and vegans.

2. Protect our planet

According to a report by The Vegetarian Resource Group, one pound of beef requires 2,500 gallons of water, whereas one pound of wheat requires only 25 gallons of water. A pound of soy only requres 250 gallons of water.

A research team of U.S. and Brazilian scientists led by William Laurance of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute also found that demand for more grazing land has led to a sharp rise in the rate of deforestation since 1995. Laurance says:

“Forest destruction from 1995 to 2000 averaged almost two million hectares a year [in the Amazon basin alone]. That’s equivalent to seven football fields a minute, and it’s comparable to the bad old days in the 1970s and 1980s, when forest loss in the Amazon was catastrophic.”

These depressing cases are only the tip of the iceberg on the impact our meat-eating lifestyle is having on the planet. If you want to help save our water, rainforest and natural heritage from being destroyed, cut meat from your diet as a way to actively protect the planet.

3. Treat all animals humanely

Most people are somewhat aware what goes on in slaughter houses and chicken, pig and cow farms. But, few people actually understand the depth of cruelty and inhumane treatment innocent animals bred solely for the purpose of being slaughtered for food are subjected to by humans.

Chicken are taken from their natural habitat and packed in tiny crates full of flies, lice and feces. Crates are so crowded the birds can hardly move. The birds are brutally de-beaked with no anaesthetics to prevent them from pecking each other while they shuffle for some space.

Cows are not better either. They are injected with growth hormones that make them too heavy to even carry their own weight. Sometimes the cows cannot even stand and break legs when they attempt to stand.

This inhumane treatment of animals would not be necessary if we all adopted a pescetarian diet. Sir James Paul McCartney stresses the point by saying, “If slaughter houses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian."